Illusions - Episode III
by xPhoenixDreams
Summary: Yellow Diamond is gone. Iolite is still out there and Tourmaline is poofed, presumably shattered and soon brainwashed. Will the Crystal Gems find her and defeat the new Queen of Homeworld? Or will they forget to look for her like they always do?
1. Plotting

Chapter One: Plotting

Iolite panicked, her hands shaking frantically.

She grabbed onto the nearest falling rock and closed her eyes as she fell to the floor with a swift _plop!_ , scrambling onto her feet when she landed.

Her gloves, which almost reached her elbows, had ripped, and her gem had cracked a bit.

She conjured an illusion of the Diamond Spire in an attempt to keep Homeworld Gems from panicking.

But one thing has changed.

As the most powerful Gem alive, she had rights.

She was the Queen of Homeworld.

 **The Crystal Temple, 9:48 A.M – Friday, Nov. 3**

Steven woke up.

It had been a week since Yellow Diamond had been bubbled.

It was a happy week, too.

Connie had come over at least three times because she heard of the whole thing from Steven.

Word was that Iolite had been there during the fight, but she was either invisible or conjured an illusion shield.

Malachite knew she was there. He didn't want anyone to panic because, if they did, they'd unfuse, and it would take forever to take down Yellow Diamond if they couldn't fuse.

And had Iolite noticed Tourmaline's gem falling to the ground if she hadn't escaped in time?

She'd probably brainwash her.

And then, they'd be fighting an old friend.

One who has no idea what she's doing.


	2. Purple Puma Returns

Chapter Two: Purple Puma Returns

 **The Crystal Temple, 11:56 P.M – Sunday, Nov. 5**

Steven opened his eyes and saw Amethyst turn on the kitchen light.

He squinted, temporarily blinded.

He watched her leave before getting up, looking through the window and rubbing his eyes.

He saw her throwing off a cloak, revealing her shapeshifted muscular body.

Steven decided to follow her, but found that she was going in circles around Beach City.

He heard Amethyst whispering something like "This has to be the place."

She entered one of the buildings but Steven caught her by the arm.

"Amethyst? Are you wrestling again?"

She jumped back. She was sure Steven was asleep.

Steven pulled back, scared of the expression on her face.

"Steven. Go home. Please."

He shook his head. "No!"

He looked around and saw a skinny figure poking its head past the corner.

"Pearl?"

The figure retreated to the safety of the corner.

Steven walked past the corner and jumped back when he saw that the figure was indeed Pearl, who was wearing a white suit with wings on the back. She was shapeshifted into what looked like a cross between a velociraptor and her regular self.

Amethyst rushed into the stadium, leaving Steven in the dust.

Pearl followed behind her, who told Steven to wait in the small section with the vending machines.

Steven poked his head out the door, watching Pearl and Amethyst fighting a human.

Amethyst threw a swift uppercut, followed by a punch to the jaw.

Pearl spun with her arms out, quickly punching his partner.

Amethyst landed a dropkick, leaving the guy completely dazed while Pearl performed a moonsault.

Suddenly, the two humans got up, retaliating.

Pearl laughed, picking one of them up. Amethyst got on the ring post, jumping onto him, performing an almost perfect Doomsday Device maneuver.

Because everyone else was scared of taking them on, they all forfeited, which wasn't any fun.

However, there was still another challenger.

He was a male, had a cloak, the shadows covering his face and leaving only his eyes visible, and had boots, which made clicking sounds as he walked.

He obviously wasn't human, though.

The pair could tell, because now they were performing a fusion dance. They wouldn't use fusion against a human.

Opal shot an arrow, which was not light, but solid.

It hit the wall, sending pieces of the already-collapsing roof falling. They unfused afterward.

The hooded figure leaped to the side, pinning Pearl to the ground, growling.

Amethyst jumped on his back, turning him to the side.

The crowd loved it, but the ref hated the roughness.

Amethyst got a grip on his hood unintentionally, but she decided to pull it off.

Her eyes widened in shock. "Oh no."

She looked at his collarbone and found it.

It was Altaite.

Amethyst got up, stomping her foot. "I'm out."

Pearl followed silently.

Steven opened his mouth to speak but decided not to under the certain conditions.

Altaite sprinted out. "Wait!"

He turned and saw Steven.

"Did you... watch that?"

He nodded.

"I'm just doing it to keep my mind off of Tourmaline..."

Steven nodded again and said, "Let's go home."

The two followed behind Amethyst and Pearl, funning as fast as they could.

That was awkward.


	3. Space Race Pt 2

Chapter Three: Space Race 2

 **Family Barn, 5:14 P.M – Monday, Nov. 6**

The two technicians snuck in, removing the lock.

Peridot looked at the things in the barn. "Remind me why we're here again."

Pearl turned to face her. "This one time, I tried to build a rocket ship. I took Steven with me and we ended up having to eject. But with the two of us, we can make a functional ship! We can go on missions throughout the galaxy!"

Peridot's eyes lit up. "I'm in!"

Pearl smiled. "I knew you'd agree to do this."

 **Family Barn, 10:28 P.M – Later, Nov. 6**

They backed away, staring at the machine they made, jaws dropping.

The two didn't know they were so good at doing things if they'd just work together.

Pearl ran forward, studying the metal.

"You did a great job melding these together!"

Peridot blushed. "Thanks. I guess."

"Shall we test it out?"

"Sure."

 **Brooding Hill, 10:34 P.M – Later, Nov. 6**

Steven was up on the hill watching the city lights turn off one by one.

He couldn't sleep, not after last night's wrestling match.

He looked out in the direction of the barn and saw something.

Fire?

 **Family Barn, 10:59 P.M – Later, Nov. 6**

It took a bit to get to the barn, but once he got there, he saw that there was a rocket ship getting ready to take off.

Inside, he saw two figures; one with a long nose and another with a triangle-shaped head.

Peridot and Pearl.

He tried knocking on the metal, but it was no use.

Pearl scanned the area.

"Three."

Peridot shifted in her seat, pulling on the straps.

"Two."

They both leaned forward in anticipation.

"One!"

They braced themselves, blasting into the sky.

The shock waves were enough to send Steven flying a couple of feet away.

He panicked, running around until he found a grappling hook.

 _Why did my grandparents have a grappling hook?_ He thought.

He shot straight at the rocket and by a loose panel.

He tried not to look down, waltzing over to the panel and ripping it off, entering the tiny storage.

He opened the equally tiny door, squeezing in.

"Pearl! Are you trying to go to space again?"

Pearl jumped back. "Steven! How did you get here?!"

He showed her the grappling hook, shrugging.

"Uh, seriously! Are you trying again?!"

Pearl turned to face the window and tried to steer away from an incoming asteroid, barely escaping.

The close encounter left them with one wing and a single booster.

They plummeted back down to Earth.

Peridot screamed and yelled. "Get me off this... _thing_!"

She removed her strap, floating around and eventually slamming into the window, cracking it.

Pearl clenched her jaw. "We're almost there!"

The remaining wing gave out.

Their lives depending on one booster.

Steven made his way to the front, his hand hovering over the " **EJECT** " button.

"Pearl, listen. We won't make it. It's out of our solar system. It would take at least a decade to reach other planets if it takes almost a year, sometimes two years! Are you willing to risk this? We only have one booster left, how would that last so long?"

Pearl blinked tears away, pushing the red button herself.

Peridot floated toward her.

They held Steven tight.

"Steven! If I accidentally let go, avenge me!"

He laughed.

They floated back down to Earth.

Home.


	4. Fusion Buddies

Chapter Four: Fusion Buddies

 **The Crystal Temple, 4:36 P.M – Thursday, Nov. 9**

Steven walked up to his room, snatching his phone from the small bedside table.

He heard it ring, the same ringtone, as usual, playing.

It was Connie.

"Hey, Steven."

"Hey."

"So, um... There's this new restaurant in town. They have a kind of French-Italian theme...Do you want to come with us? Mother said it would be okay."

"Yeah, sure."

"So... it's a date?"

"Yeah, I guess you could call it that, but it isn't really a 'date'..."

Connie snickered. "I know, I know. Well, see you later."

"Bye."

"Bye."

 **Chute 36 (C36), 4:38 P.M – Thursday, Nov. 9**

The spherical shuttle slammed against the wall, _natural_ quartz scraping against it.

Malachite guided the shuttle farther down the chute and to the center, setting the vehicle to hover just over the Earth's core.

He propped open one of the windows, taking in a breath of fresh, hot core wind.

After a couple of breaths he started coughing, closing the crystal window.

"C36" had always been his favorite for hovering just above the planet's lifeblood.

Malachite eventually got bored of waiting for his client, speeding up the chute, the G-force rippling his skin.

Then, some weird machine dug through the ground near him.

Inside was a pale Gem, about five-foot eight, with long white hair.

Her gem wasn't visible from this angle, but it was on the back of her head, covered by hair.

Malachite's shuttle extended a small walkway for the two to meet on.

She walked with one foot in front of the other, like a celebrity would.

"I believe you have what I needed?"

"Yep." He summoned the bubble that contained Jet's obelisk, handing it to her.

She gave him gold from Homeworld, which took on a purple hue.

She smiled. "Thanks. I think you'll be glad when you find that I would destroy this corrupt thing."

Malachite nodded.

He basically got someone to do the Crystal Gems' dirty work and he got paid for it.

She threw a necklace at him, which was connected to a transparent-blue crystal that seemed synthetic.

"If you need anything else to be destroyed, hit me up. Name's Moonstone."

Malachite nodded again. "Yeah. Thanks for the gold, but I really don't need it."

Moonstone looked back at him halfway to her drill.

"Keep it."

She left without another word.

 **The Grove, 6:24 P.M – Thursday, Nov. 9**

Steven sat down at the table.

Dr. Maheswaran asked the Gems if they wanted to sit.

"No, thank you," was the quiet and polite response Onyx gave her.

Steven turned to face the Gems. "This-," he gestured around the room, "-better not go wrong."

They smiled at him. "It won't."

Malachite felt a bit of rumbling under his feet.

"Excuse me." He went outside, walking up the hill.

When he was near the top, he saw a drill head, and found Moonstone talking into a communication amulet.

"Yes. Uh-huh. I've secured Jet. Yep. Heh, he doesn't even know. As if we would destroy our most valuable warrior... Yes, ma'am. Mhm. Okay. Bye. I'll see you at the Mirage Hills."

She looked around, pulling on gloves that looked like Iolite's.

She turned to leave, but Malachite stopped her, summoning his sword.

He spoke in a mock voice. "Hey. I missed you."

Moonstone dodged his sword, summoning her own sword.

"Hey, guess what? I'd like you better off in a bubble."

He ducked, avoiding a slash.

"I know who you are. I know who you're working for."

She growled. "Try and stop us. Miss Iolite would be pleased to have your gem crushed."

Malachite made a strange gasping sound. "I'll have you know, I didn't fight three rulers of Homeworld to fall to another one."

Moonstone slapped him with her right hand.

"Oh. So now you wanna get real."

He summoned multiple swords, which hovered around him.

He made jabbing motions, sending them after her.

…

Azurite's ears pricked up.

He took Andesine by the hand, dashing outside with her.

"Hey! What's with you?! Where are we going?!"

Azurite stopped to face her. "Malachite's in trouble."

Andesine rolled her eyes. "Obviously."

He snapped at her. "We need to go."

…

They reached the hill and saw that Malachite was pinned to the ground. There were a ton of swords by him.

Moonstone had her sword in the air, holding the blade down and aiming for his gem.

She dropped it when she heard footsteps.

Those footsteps eventually started making stomping sounds.

A large, purple Gem with a red gem for an eye and another blue eye made its way up the hill.

It wielded a large hammer and a thorned sword.

Malachite's eyes lit up.

"Azurite?! Andesine?!"

The once-derp-faced fusion now had anger in its not-so-derpy- eyes, grabbing Moonstone.

Smithsonite flung her into the air, smashing her into the ground with Andesine's hammer.

Moonstone got in the drill. "I'm reporting this to Miss Iolite!"

Garnet appeared in front of the drill, grabbing it in her gauntlets.

"Nope!" She broke the outside, exposing the frame and a frantic Moonstone.

Moonstone smashed a button, surrounding her in a white escape pod. The booster on the bottom started up, sending her into the sky.

Garnet watched with disgust, turning to Malachite. "Who was she? Does she work for Iolite?"

He looked down at his feet. "Her name was Moonstone. She was one of those blacksmiths, the kind that also destroys inactive criminal Gems. She gave me Homeworld gold for some reason. And, yes, she does work for Iolite."

Garnet eyed him. "Okay. If I knew, I would've crushed her. Tell me next time."

"...Okay."

Smithsonite walked down the hill, unfusing.

 **The Grove, Outside, 7:37 P.M – Thursday, Nov. 9**

Steven pat his belly. "That food was amazing." He turned to face the Gems.

"I wish you guys could taste it." Pearl, Azurite, Turquoise, Malachite, Andesine, and Orthoclase all groaned.

Of course, they didn't like to eat.

But if they did, they'd enjoy it too.

There was no time to reminisce over good-tasting food.

Moonstone and Iolite were out there.

And they were going to free Jet.


	5. The Awakening

Chapter Five: The Awakening

 **Helios Port, ?:? - ?, ?. ?**

Moonstone lurched forward in her escape pod while trying to send a flare signal to Iolite.

Her white transport / attack pod was known for its sudden stops, causing passengers to lurch forward in their seats, regardless of whether they were secured in by a seatbelt-like device or not.

She left the pod in front of a small docking area shaped like a fort, leaving it to hover in the indent.

Moonstone walked over to the quartz window, looking at the sun outside.

Many other Gems, Gemlings, to be exact, posed in front of the glass for their "parents" to take a picture.

The older one, who couldn't be more than a five centuries old, put two of his fingers behind his brother's head.

Afterward, they left with their "parents," completely unaware that everything back at Homeworld had changed since they'd last been there.

Moonstone missed being young, running around in the closest Gem terminal to the center of this solar system.

She took an ID out of her pocket, scanning it in a machine.

She took a small capsule from it, loading it into her new Voidbelt.

A Voidbelt was like an infinite storage as long as it was worn by a Gem, that Gem had a Homeworld ID, and was approved by Iolite, which really filtered out the other thousands of Gems who had the first two.

Moonstone set the capsule in a small slot, which opened it before sending it off in a black cloud of smoke.

Inside it was a communicator, but it disappeared before she could touch it.

She got back in her pod, continuing the journey back to Homeworld.

 **Mirror Castle, 3:17 – Sunday, Nov. 12**

She flew in, creating exact replicas of the Crystal Gems.

Lapis had made a palace using glass, ice, and water. She'd come here if she was stressed or was bored.

She heard heavy footsteps near her.

She turned and saw Jasper's smiling face.

Lapis snarled. "I hate you."

Jasper laughed. "You don't stand a chance. Yellow Diamond is gone. But now there's a new queen."

She tapped on the purple insignia on her torso.

"Iolite already has three members for her posse." She watched Jasper recoil.

"Well... well, I... I'm next in line in case one of them fails."

"Yeah, right. I've seen one. Moonstone, I think. She's not one to fail."

Lapis let out a sarcastic laugh. "I wish I still had you trapped in the ocean."

Jasper grunted, leaving.

"Wait."

Lapis walked over, slapping her. "It's still really fun slapping you even if we aren't fused."

She bit her. "Don't. Do that. EVER."

Lapis summoned a pillar of water under Jasper, freezing it into a spike.

When Jasper fell back to the ground from being launched up, she fell onto the spike.

Lapis sprinted over, laughing. She made the spike sharper, making it go through Jasper's skin.

"Stop!"

She kept making it sharper until it came through Jasper's arm.

She struggled, trying to get it off, but vanished into a orange cloud.

Lapis picked the gem off the ground, bubbling it.

 **Homeworld, 8:19 – Sunday, Nov. 12**

Moonstone got out of the pod, taking the bubble with her.

However, she tripped on her heels, almost dropping the bubble.

She wiped her forehead, taking another step but tripping again.

 _Clumsy me_ , she thought. Then she realized that she wasn't holding the bubble anymore.

It rolled a bit, popping when it hit a piece of glass.

 _Jasper needs to stop punching glass..._

She watched the gem glow.

Jet cycled through his many forms.

Heck, one was short, was WEARING shorts, and was, overall, weird.

He stopped glowing and fell onto the marble floor.

He felt his new fingerless gloves and fell in love with them. "I'm never taking these off."

He studied his ruffled black and white hair, ruffling it even more.

The broken glasses he had were repaired and his coat was gone, replaced by a full-body cloak and black boots.

He could live with this.

And if he knew he'd serve Iolite, he wouldn't try to fight Moonstone.


	6. Return to the Core

Chapter Six: Return to the Core

 **Chute 119 (C119), ?:? - Monday, Nov. 13**

Malachite sent the shuttle into the small garage.

Patches of crystals adorned the walls here and there, pulsing with light and heat like colored lightbulbs.

"Okay, guys. If the battle with Iolite takes us underground, we must be prepared to ride in our own shuttles. And if it doesn't, well, we can ride in these after kicking her butt."

Malachite gave them instructions while he painted the dull gray shuttle green with bands of black, which resembled his gem.

When he was done, he watched the other Gems finishing up.

Pearl's was white and light gray, Amethyst's was purple, and Garnet's was reddish-purple with the top and bottom being red and blue.

Rose and Steven shared one, theirs being pink with a rose design on it.

Turquoise painted hers blue with thin brown lines running through it, and Tiger's Eye adorned hers with dark yellow and brown stripes.

Onyx's was pure black, and Altaite's was gray with white lines.

Andesine and Orthoclase shared a shuttle, seeing as their gems were just different shades of reddish-orange.

Selenite's was white with a bit of light gray on the top and bottom.

Finally, Azurite's was blue with hints of green.

Malachite took his out, nearing the core.

Back home, he heard that if you went in, you'd enter a place with the outcast Gems.

But he knew that it'd be ridiculous, and if it worked, he'd still be face-to-deformed-face with the Cluster.

He decided to go in anyways, just to see if the Cluster actually _was_ real.

 **Lost Dimension, ?:? - Monday, Nov. 13**

Malachite woke up.

He'd been rendered unconscious, but when he awoke, he could hear the winds outside and see a bit of light leaking through the quartz windshield.

He looked around and finally decided to get out of the shuttle, finding an entire city before him. The buildings were ruined, Gem shards scattered everywhere.

He studied one of the shards.

They belonged to a white gem with gray veins.

There was only one of those, and that was a Howlite.

He found another shard that stuck out from the rest.

It was a shard of Agate.

Tears started welling up in his eyes.

This was an old enemy, yes, but memories of defeating her brought back nostalgia.

He looked up and was surprised to see some life forms.

They were Shadowlings, but passive, as he could tell by the white down on their bodies. They flew past him without regarding the fact that he was watching them.

Malachite got up. He bubbled most of the shards he found, whether he knew what gem it was or not.

He got back into his almost-broken shuttle, starting it up. He flew straight up into the roof, which he now saw was wavering with heat and gas.

 **Chute 119 (C119), ?:? - Monday, Nov. 13**

Malachite flew in a straight line out of the core.

And somehow, just somehow, Steven could survive in these conditions. He just realized this. Maybe because he was part Gem.

But Malachite survived, and he swore he'd keep this all a secret.

 **?, Meanwhile - ?**

His shoes clicked against the floor, echoing along the walls.

He ran a hand through his hair, pausing to look at his reflection in the wall.

The blue Gem continued walking down the hall, toward the door with a dark blue gemstone on it.

Of course, he knocked. What civilized Gem didn't?

Iolite answered the door. "Yes?"

"Hello, mistress. I've checked the Hills, as you asked."

"Good," she hissed.

He blushed. "So, what's the next course of action, my love?"

Iolite stared at him, almost blushing herself. "Don't call me that unless you want to be shattered."


	7. Mirage Hills

Chapter Seven: Mirage Hills

 **Mirage Hills, 11:42 P.M – Saturday, Nov. 25**

Iolite dragged the unconscious Gem behind her, his arm knocking against her leg.

 _When will Blue learn? I'm not interested, and he should know by now that I follow through with my promises._

She went up the hill, looking up at the cluster of stars floating just meters above.

On top of the hill was a circle consisting of crystals and some vines growing out of them. It looked like the Stonehenge.

The Warp Pad in the center was inactive – Now it served as a ritual table of sorts.

She let go of Blue Spinel's arm, making sure he didn't fall off the steep hill. Putting a blue bubble on the ex-Warp Pad, she popped it, letting Jet reform.

He still looked the same since he fought Moonstone, except for the deep light gray scar running from his left eyebrow, above his eye, and ending near his lip.

"What do you want?"

"What I want is for you to behave. You're a soldier, are you not?"

He blushed, but it went unseen as his skin was about the same gray color.

"Yes, I am. And he is..?"

"Well, soon, he'll be shattered."

"Not his status. His name."

"I know, I just thought you should be aware. His name is Blue Spinel."

The Warp Pad activated.

"Are you trying to escape?"

Her question wasn't answered.

Jet collapsed in front of her, Tiger's Eye in his place, her fist cracking upon impact with his head.

"Ouch, I haven't punched since last night..."

Iolite got up, slapping Blue. "Wake up!"

Malachite tapped her shoulders, almost making her flinch.

She felt for Blue's gem, smacking it with her open palm. Her gem glowed.

"Glow, you stupid thing!"

When she got it to glow, she took a kick to the back, followed by a ball of energy from Pearl's spear.

Garnet summoned her gauntlets, attempting what they called the "Peridot Method" – squeezing a Gem till they poofed.

"Let go of me, you permafusion!"

Peridot looked out from behind Amethyst. "That's my line..."

Lapis flew above her, falling onto her neck and holding her tight. "You're not escaping."

Iolite summoned a katar, slashing at Lapis's arm, smiling when she let go to avoid being hit.

She sprinted toward Rose, who summoned her shield, blocking every hit. She ducked when Iolite tried to jump at her, catching her from below and throwing her into the air effortlessly.

Altaite shot a cannonball at her, hitting her stomach.

Iolite threw multiple katar, not caring whether or not that was a way to use them.

Onyx dashed from behind, stabbing his lance into her back.

It made her form crackle and dissipate like some form of technology being disrupted.

They could hear some rustling behind them.

–

A million questions buzzed in her head.

 _How could they repair the Warp Pad from this side of it?!_

 _How are they already that powerful?_

 _What am I supposed to do to stop them?_

 _Who do I go to?_

She knew that they disposed of her "voodoo illusion" – one that can take hits while it looks solid, much like needles are stuck into a voodoo doll.

Jet followed behind her, jumping ahead every now and then.

The three arrived at their castle, one still unconscious.

Tiger's Eye could punch her way through a war if she had to.

Altaite's cannon could easily penetrate.

Rose Quartz had tricks up her sleeve.

And Onyx was savage.

They all had to train if they wanted to beat the Crystal Gems.

And she knew the right person to go to for help.


	8. Captured

**Chapter Eight: Captured**

 **?, ?:? - ?, ?. ?**

Iolite walked past the pillars and into a wall. It fizzled, but then solidified once more. She opened a case with a gem inside, letting it regenerate. Trying not to reach inside with her own hand, she poked it with a prod and over the edge, into her other hand.

It glowed, then warped a bit, then gained a physical body around it.

The aristocrat, reborn.

And now, story time.

–

There had always been more than one Diamond.

Yellow, Pink, Blue, White, all of which were included in the Diamond Emblem.

However, Black Diamond, the youngest, had his added to the Emblem after being proven worthy.

There were two of each Diamond.

Two Blue Diamonds, the aristocratic leader, and the one that would later become Pink Diamond's partner (more like fusion slave).

Two Yellow Diamonds, though only the first was a leader. The second... well, no one knows as of yet.

Two White Diamonds. Only they know their true purpose; it was never revealed what they were, or what they were meant to do.

And finally, two Pink Diamonds.

There was the one that everyone just knows and "loves."

But no one knows about the Pink Diamond that seceded from the Diamond Empire.

She now goes by another name, that being Rose Quartz.

Her Pearl knows this.

She denies this.

She _loathes_ it.

She denies that her liege was ever in higher power; that she was even related to the horrible Diamonds.

She did it for her life.

 _Her one love._

–

Tourmaline walked past the pews, standing in front of the altar.

The Blue Diamond insignia flashed in front of her.

"My Diamond. I see... I see you are gone now. But we, your subjects, will remember you. I will never disobey you. I wait for the day that you come back for us."

It disappeared. She walked away, smirking. The Blue Diamond symbol on her dress glowed a bit, then faded away.

Tourmaline didn't remember anything.

Not her friends.

Not her power.

Not her love.

They were all gone; wiped. She was lost now. They wouldn't come back for her, would they? She could remember some things, like fighting a giant... brain?

She didn't look into this. She walked into the hall, punching the head off a Yellow Diamond statue with one swipe.

Tourmaline entered Iolite's room and curtsied. She then sat, ignoring the eyes glaring at her from the shadows.

All soulless, heartless.

All brainwashed.

Some other Gems sat by her in a circle, ones who were not brainwashed, or heartless, or soulless.

Iolite dug her nails into the device she was holding. It crackled and died, giving a final whine of disapproval. She tossed it aside, hitting Blue Spinel, who was unfortunate enough to sit next to her.

He grunted, slouched, and then sat straight, a small bead of sweat running down his temple.

Iolite spoke in a harsh yet welcoming tone. "Tourmaline, we have invited you into our circle. We welcome you. However, shall you betray us, we will break you. Is that understood?"

She nodded, her eyes full of rage and anticipation.

"Then, welcome. Welcome to the Shade Society."


	9. Power Split

**Chapter Nine: Power Split**

 **The Crystal Temple, 9:38 AM – Tuesday, Nov. 28**

Azurite left his Cave, sealing it. He continued around the corner and into the Temple, smiling at Malachite and Turquoise, who were discussing their favorite smoothie recipes.

Turquoise put in some strawberries. "Yeah, well, I think it needs more strawberries and pineapples!"

"No, no! It needs more pineapple and _kale_ , not strawberries! There are already strawberries in there!"

Azurite joined them. "Both of you are wrong. It needs more raspberries and blueberries, obviously!"

They fought for a bit and stopped when Andesine walked in. She held up a finger, a sign for them to be silent. "I know what you're doing, and I disagree." She walked over.

"It needs more STRAWBERRIES!"

"YEAH! See, Malachite! In your face!"

He stuck his tongue out at her.

Andesine continued. "AND KALE!"

He laughed.

"AND, AND..."

Azurite's expression brightened up. "Raspberries?"

"NO! It needs more... more..."

They all joined her. "Pineapple!"

–

 **Sky Arena, 3:14 PM – Later**

Azurite and Andesine stood at their side, holding hands. Malachite and Turquoise stood opposite, their gems shining. All of them summoned their weapons and threw them into the air. Malachite and Turquoise fused, catching their weapons.

Azurite and Andesine didn't expect to face off against Coesite.

All of this started from the smoothie dispute..?

They dashed to the side, dodging a charge that Coesite had done. They met at the center, going in for a backslash.

Coesite dodged, charging again with Andesine in their arms. Pinning her down, he put his sword to her throat.

While this was a friendly fight, the Gems could still be poofed – it didn't matter.

Andesine mouthed something to Azurite. _"Just let them. You know we're right; just let them have this victory."_

Andesine accepted this; after all, their smoothie was supreme.

But Azurite couldn't.

Even though they were the victors, they still couldn't let Coesite prove himself stronger.

Azurite dashed into Coesite's side, accidentally brushing against Andesine. They both glowed, their forms glitching, then dissipating, then returning.

Nothing seemed different.

They were Smithsonite. Nothing wrong with that... Right?

Nope.

Upon fusing, they let loose a huge wave of energy. They turned to look at Coesite, who was lying on the ground, electricity running along his skin and hair.

Smithsonite flung their arms in the air.

Triumph.

They both unfused, Azurite and Andesine once again throwing a wave of energy.

They all sat, fried, until Azurite got up.

Making the mistake of raising his right hand in front of him, he shot what seemed like arrows or darts, leaving blue flames behind them.

"Huh?! What is _this_?!" He gasped, stomping in excitement. "New power! Cooooooollll!" He tried it again, put it seemed... It seemed like it was lacking something.

"Andesine! Do you think this is what happened after that... 'fusion accident?'"

She nodded, raising her right hand like he did. A few sparks sputtered out. Azurite girnned. "Try the other one." She did, and the ground around her broke away. She tried not to look down, but when she did, there was lava in the cracks. There must have been some rock under it; she couldn't detect any flowing lava under it.

Something else came out. It was a blast of scalding water. When it landed on the floor, it bubbled, steamed, and evaporated quickly.

"Woah! You get more than one?!"

"I guess so. You might, too. You probably just don't know how to activate it. To be fair, though, I don't either." They all shared a laugh and warped away.

Before they left, though, they felt like they were being watched.

Tourmaline?


	10. The Right Way

**Chapter Ten: The Right Way**

 **Sky Arena, 11:58 PM – Tuesday, Nov. 28**

Azurite sat cross legged, taking in deep breaths.

 _Inhale for seven, exhale for three..One, two.._

He raised his right hand, shooting a burst of energy skyward, disappearing before they had a chance to hit the floor. Andesine sat across from him, her head resting on her hand, and it was obvious that she was bored of watching Azurite meditate.

"Can I go now? I'm really tired.." Her eyelids were heavy and her voice drifting away. She seemed to be doing the same, and collapsed before Azurite could answer. She snored softly, in a way that Azurite thought was cute.

The ground around her shot up, and it looked like something splashed into the water, the impact making the water shoot up a bit – but with stone and quartz.

Azurite touched it with his left hand, burning it. His hand, now slightly lavender-colored, hurt like heck. The spikes around Andesine were now growing and curving, keeping her in a small capsule of sorts, for protection.

A Gem poked her head out from behind a pillar. She was tiny and cat-like, and seemed like a smaller version of Tiger's Eye. Her hair was ombre, too, like Tiger's Eye. Her face was like that of a porcelain doll's – fragile and detailed.

Azurite noticed her. "Hi. Who might you be?"

She left her hiding spot to get a better glance at him. Her eyes widened before she turned and jumped off the Sky Arena, gliding down.

–

Andesine woke up, the capsule falling around her like one of Steven's shields. She had a stupid look on her face, and her heavy eyelids could not stop falling.

"Rise and shine," Azurite whispered, leaning over her.

"Huh... D-did I fall asleep?"

"Surprisingly, yes. I'm astounded that you even did... Gems don't get tired."

The Gem from earlier watched them from the safety of her pillar. Her claws were out – she was to attack them without question. She dashed forward, leaving deep gashes in Azurite's back.

He gasped, but it was cut short. He disappeared in a light blue cloud, his gem falling to the floor. It bounced twice, clinking, before arriving at Andesine's feet.

She shook her head. "No!" She summoned her hammer, avoiding slashes from the Gem, who was about as tall as Ruby and Sapphire were.

She brought it down on her head and she poofed. It looked like a firework – she exploded into brown and yellow particles, with a bit of white in the middle. Andesine walked over to the spherical gem, which also had white running down the middle of it. It was mainly brown with yellow streaks.

She put it in an orange-pink bubble, studying the gem inside. "Hm, it can't be a Tiger's Eye. Too small, too perfect, unlike the personality. Perfect facial features as well. Long retractable claws, all shiny and white. No doubt about it, it's Cat's Eye."

She picked Azurite's gem off the floor and left the Arena, warping back to the Temple.


	11. Special Event III: Beta Test

**Special Event III**

 **Beta Test**

 **Crystal Temple, 12:19 - Saturday, Dec. 1**

Steven walked into the Temple only to be confronted by Peridot. She seemed excited; her fingers were twitching, her hands trembling, while she tapped her foot on the ground. She was chuckling, too. This can't be good.

"Steeeeeveeeeennnn!"

"Yeeeeessssss?"

"I want to make a thing!"

"What kinda thing?"

"Well, it will take a long time. But it's a machine!"

"...For what?"

"What do you mean, 'For what'?! It's for Azurite and Andesine! Y-y'know! Like.. Like a... Hm..." She folded her arms behind her back, then thought about it.

"Like a... um... What is it... Oh! Yes! Like a... it's just a capsule that gives them strength." She started the sentence confident, but her tone was just flat toward the end.

"Cool! So... What do you need me for?"

"I need you to round up all of the Gems for me. I need them to gather some things. I made a 'drawing' to show who gets what. Here!" She threw a sheet of paper at him. On it were the Gems'... gems. Malachite's gem had a line connecting it to the word "titanium" and a little visual under it. Azurite and Andesine's faces were to the corner of the paper. They didn't have to do anything.

He read it out loud. This is what it said:

 _Malachite – Titanium_

 _Altaite – **Liquid** Mercury_

 _Onyx – Crystal Power Core_

 _Tiger's Eye – Chunk of **MY** Red Eye_

 _Tourmaline –_

 _Turquoise – Hypollen Honey_

Steven's expression could easily be read. "Why are all of these so hard to get? Are you building some sort of death machine?"

Peridot put on a face that strangers would take as insane. "No! I just need them to get these things, okay?"

"Okay, whatever you say." She hissed at that. He shook a finger at her. "Rude."

–

 **Chute 99 (C99) - _Later_**

Malachite's shuttle slammed against the wall. He stopped at a high elevation, right above a vein of titanium. He activated the shuttle drill, veering off the main chute and making his own. He stopped above the biggest chunk and drilled down into it. Huge pieces were scooped into the shuttle, and soon enough, the whole thing would be full.

He didn't hear the roar until he was done drilling.

A very faint roar.

It was above him – no, beneath him...

Was it everywhere?!

There would be no escape, would there..?

 **Crystal Temple – _Later_**

Altaite's right eye glowed, casting a projection in front of him. He conjured a keyboard and looked for some place where he could find mercury – or something. He found one; on Homeworld.

It was a Gem blacksmith named Black Opal. He went by other names as well, such as Galaxy Opal, which his gem did resemble. Altaite booked a ride from Helios Port, and from there, he'd go to the Forge, where he'd meet Black Opal.

 **Chute 99 (C99) – _Later_**

The worm-thing appeared in front of Malachite. It was purple with darker diamond patterns here and there. He summoned his sword, jumped off the shuttle, and started slashing at it. It glowed, shrinking.

Amethyst stood in its place, laughing. Malachite threw his sword to the side. He shook his head. "Why?"

"Why NOT?! Hahah!"

"Amethyst. I am serious. Why did you do that? Now the _real_ Guardian will wake up."

Amethyst's eyes widened. "Oh no."

The ground shook, causing a cave-in. The two were crushed just as their gems glowed.

–

Prasiolite rose from the rubble, her two gems intact and shining. She summoned a whip and a sword, combining them to create another sword. She swung it at the beast ahead of her, and the top half of it turned into a whip. The creature hissed, diving back into the ground.

 **Cloud Prison – _Later_**

Onyx's intuition was correct. The Crystal Power Core gleamed before him on a pedestal, floating for all eternity.

It resembled the Centipeetle's gem, without the circle at the middle of the band. Instead, it intersected another band, running from top to bottom. He grabbed it, triggering an alarm. He summoned his lance, jabbing it into the siren, and then ran past the vacant cells. He jumped and kicked against the wall, propelling himself higher until he reached the top.

Onyx jumped onto the Warp Pad. "Uhh... Goodbye!" he said, sticking one of Peridot's new EMP devices on his lance. She modified it so that it would destroy the Warp Pad; might as well kill two birds with one stone.

 **Hypollen Hive – _Later_**

Turquoise summoned her weapon, clawing into the wall of the Hypollen Hive. She shot blasts of energy at the corrupt Gems, poofing some. They kept flying at her, their crystal stripes glowing. The rest of their bodies started to glow too.

They all fused, a bigger one ahead of Turquoise. This was the Queen Hypollen. You could say that the people ruled themselves..?

The Queen charged at her, stinger sharp as can be. Turquoise dodged it, slicing some of it off with her blades. She proceeded to collect the honey from the cluster behind the Queen, cutting off a wing when she got close until there weren't any left. She came in even closer, provoking Turquoise. She cut off the stinger, watching it fall to the deepest pits of the Hive.

She went back to collecting the honey. "Good riddance, pest," she muttered, jumping out the hole she made. The Queen tried going through it, but got stuck in the process. Turquoise took this chance to poof it. The corrupt Ambers' gems rained down. She tried to bubble all of them; those she didn't get to were shattered or cracked.

 **Crystal Temple – _Even later_**

Tiger's Eye walked in, grunting. The chunk of that Red Eye was heavy. She tried to weigh it, but it destroyed the darn weighing scale before it even rested on it.

The other four Gems walked in as well, Peridot at Malachite's elbow, nagging about how this machine would work. Amethyst ran ahead, crashing onto the couch with her hands behind her head, her eyes closed, and a grin on her face.

Malachite carried the cube of titanium in one hand and a bubble in the other. It contained a small round black gem with white bands. "Hey Onyx, look. It's one of you."

He just grunted, setting down the Power Core's bubble.

Altaite stood next to another Gem, Black Opal. He had dark green, smooth hair, a pack slung across his back, and a hammer in his right hand. The end of the handle was a large spike.

Peridot slid on one of the limb enhancers for her arms. She put a bubble around the items, then running into her Temple room.

The inside had spikes of green rock, the tips smoothened so Peridot wouldn't accidentally hurt herself.

 **Peridot's Room – 3:14**

Onyx nudged Malachite. "Look at the time." He noticed.

"Don't tell Peridot."

He agreed, watching as Azurite and Andesine stepped into two separate pods. A glass sphere sat in the middle, the Crystal Power Core inside, floating in an odd green ooze.

The doors to the pods slid, closing. Peridot was excited until she realized one thing.

"Ngahhh! It needs more energy than THAT! It needs..."

"What does it need?" Onyx asked, curiosity writ on his face.

"FUSION POWER!"

Everyone gave a confused stare. "...What?"

"Fusion power is the energy given off when a fusion is formed! It's pretty... 'dormant,' so you don't really feel it. Onyx, please remove the Power Core. We need to charge it. Mind the green ooze. I am _not_ going through all that trouble just for some Homeworld liquid."

He proceeded to do so, carefully taking the Core. He passed it on to Black Opal, who put it in a small bubble-like case.

"Alright. This container will hopefully absorb the fusion power. Peridot, if you'd please choose two candidates, I'll get this charged immediately."

"Hmm... Amethyst... if it's okay with you, I mean... and..."

Pearl stepped back. "I'd like to give someone else a turn."

So did Garnet, as Sugilite would surely lose themself.

"I'll do it."

Someone stepped forward.

"I mean, it's been so long. It would be wrong not to continue that strange feeling, the feeling of being... stable, and yet unstable."

It was Rose.

Their gems glowed a bit, and after a short dance, a rather peculiar Gem arose from their places. She had four arms and wore a dress, the bottom section somewhat ripped. Under that she had indigo tights, which were a bit lighter than her skin. Her hair was a wild mess; it was wild, but curled as it went down.

A shock wave pulsated outwards. Peridot clapped her hands, excited. "Yesssss! It's perfect! It's so stable-unstable you can feel ittttttttt!"

When they fused, Black Opal held up the Power Core, which was now reacting. "Is this a chemical or physical reaction?" He questioned. Peridot simply shrugged. It was nice to have another... 'nerd' to talk to.

The Core was glowing white now. It was placed back into the strange green goo. For some reason, it turned a light pink. Blue Quartz unfused.

Malachite looked at Tiger's Eye. "Hey, it's like the goo in the lab from that one game with the anxious scientist. The one that built the self-absorbed form-changing robot?"

She glared at him. "Hey, Mettaton is cool, okay?"

"Only his theme is good, okay? Napstablook is better."

"Whatever. You know MTT's fabulous."

Onyx stepped in. "Hey, we all know Papyrus is the best."

Malachite argued. "You only think that because his brain is as small as yours."

"...But skeletons don't have brains..?"

"Exactly."

Onyx decided not to say anything. That and he couldn't come up with a good comeback.

After a bit, the two participants stepped into their pods.

The whirring sound of machinery was deafening. Amethyst yelled over it, "Could it have been a bit louder?!"

"Sure." Peridot turned up the Power value. The sound certainly was louder, and they couldn't hear anything for at least a minute or two.

"That was SARCASM!"

"Mmm... Use it in a sentence."

"Sarcasm: What you call my fist against your forehead."

There was one thing Malachite, Onyx, and Tiger's Eye could all agree on: The fact that Peridot had just gotten dunked on.

When Andesine and Azurite stepped out, they seemed tired. Drained, even.

Peridot made a strange sound. Excited, obviously. That's what it always meant. "Test it!"

Azurite stomped on the ground to protest but was cut short by an odd rumbling sound. The ground opened up, creating a fissure. Whatever crystal spike used to be there was gone now; melted by the magma at the bottom.

Andesine looked over. "H-how do you have that?"

"I dunno."

"Well, let's see."

She lifted her hand, countless blue arrows shooting out. They poked into Azurite's arm, and he felt light-headed.

"Welp, see ya in the morning." He collapsed.

"Tranquilizers. Cool."

And she, too, collapsed.

Malachite crossed his arms. "Well, I'm not carrying Azurite. Or Andesine. Actually, I'm out." He lifted Andesine's hand, tranquilizing himself.

Turquoise rolled her eyes. "Well, that's one way to get out of doing something... And I'm gonna use it."

She did the same.

In the end, Garnet, Pearl, Rose, and Peridot were left with a huge pile of tranquilized Gems.

Garnet spoke. "I'll show you how to do it."

She facepalmed onto the floor.

Lights out.


	12. Purity Arc Chapter 11 : Coming Home

_**A/N:** Hey there! I'm finally back from hiatus! To all of you who have followed since Episode One, who had to bear with my horrible writing skills at the time, thank you! Your continued support means a lot to me. It's because of you guys that I decided to pick up now instead of... I don't know... July? But anyways guys, let's get this chapter started! _

**Purity** **Arc**

 **Chapter Eleven: Return Home**

 **Beach City, 12:01 AM – Sunday, Dec. 2**

She walked quickly, her hair blowing in the wind. The murder in her eyes was visible; she was twitching.

Insane.

She summoned her scythe from her gem, which now had a black ring around it.

Not Tourmaline.

It cannot be Tourmaline.

 **Crystal Temple, 8:09 AM – Sunday, Dec 2**

It was a long slumber.

The Gems finally woke up, but it wasn't exactly a peaceful morning.

Over night, someone had shattered the windows, ripped through the screens, destroyed the entrance to Steven's room, and trashed the Temple Door. One of the gems was missing.

After a quick count, they found out it was Tourmaline.

Malachite seemed angry. "Who would do this? Only another Gem is powerful enough to remove someone from the door, right, Rose? So then why is one missing?!"

A shadow was cast over Altaite's face. "I know exactly why. At the moment, our only enemies are Iolite, Jet, and Blue Spinel. But, of course, they aren't alone; they have a whole army behind them. And one of them is... It has to be-"

Rose put a hand on Altaite's shoulder. "We understand that this is hard for you. We don't want you to have to fight someone you love. I want you to remember that we're here for you, and that we'll try our best to help you in your depression."

Everyone else nodded.

Altaite sighed. "Well then, what does this mean for us?"

Malachite put both his hands down on the table. "We find Tourmaline's exact location. We go in, try to find a way to insert a chip into her skin, and get out as soon as possible. We won't take chances, and we don't want to have to track her every time we need to make progress. Understood?"

Everyone nodded.

"But what if she sees us?" Orthoclase inquired.

"I was hoping you'd ask." He walked around the table and into the Warp Pad section. His gem glowed, opening the Temple Door.

 **Malachite's Lab, 8:17 AM – Sunday, Dec. 2**

Malachite led them around a long white table. There were countless test tubes on a rack, which was hanging from the wall. He had left some flasks on the table, each with a different color, a different chemical.

There was a ring stand sitting on an elevated part of the table. It held a flask with a strange clear liquid.

He took a test tube from another ring stand. It contained an even stranger liquid; he held it up to the light, showing everyone what happened. It heated up a bit, then started changing color multiple times.

Malachite put it into the flask, quickly adding a small rubber ball before it reacted.

There was a blinding flash.

The ball, now crystalline and black, popped right out of the flask and into Malachite's hand.

"Okay good! It worked. Now I know that I can repeat this process all over until I have three..."

Selenite was curious. "And what exactly do these things do?"

"I was getting to that. 'These things' are called Stealth Orbs. You just slip it into one of the capsules on your Status belt, which, yes, is what we use to conjure an impenetrable shield around us, and it turns you invisible. It also works with your weapons if you want it to. This is what we'll use to get behind Tourmaline, and possibly Iolite's... friends. Of course, it'll also mask your footsteps. If you really want to, you can choose to play a sound over your footsteps to get them paranoid. Useful if we want to catch them off guard."

They understood.

 **Crystal Temple, 12:57 PM – Sunday, Dec. 2**

Tiger's Eye held up a cup of coffee. "Does anyone want creamer?"

Onyx held his up. "Me!"

"Liquid or powder?"

"Liquid, please-"

She took a spoon of it, flicking it in Onyx's face.

"Wha-?"

She used that spoon to scoop it up, putting it in his coffee. "You're welcome."

"Okay, I know I'm stupid, but are you being mean just because I like Papyrus?"

"Oh, no, I like Papyrus. It's just that you haven't completed your mission report. Altaite, show him!"

His eye flashed, but someone stopped him.

"No need. I've compiled all the data. Onyx, she's right; You haven't turned in your mission report, even though the bubble is in the chamber. I checked. Also, Malachite, when can I repair that sword? It's been hours and I can't wait to modify it."

"Black Opal, wait until later. I have to retrieve it from a bubble in my lab and double-check that its machinery is working. It's my favorite model, and I wouldn't want the device on it to fail."

Black Opal put his face inches in front of Malachite's. "I swear, if you think I'll make a mistake, I will literally flip all three of your temples inside-out."

Of course, this was supposed to be a pun. He meant both of his facial temples and the very structure they were sitting in right now. What a pain.

The other Gems looked at Black Opal as if he had just done something insane. Steven's jaw dropped; his bagel was hanging out of his mouth.

"Got it."

"Good." He straightened himself, putting his hands on his hips. "Well, when can I start?"

He smiled.

"...I said later."

"Ugh. Are there any missions I can do in the meantime?"

Pearl walked toward Malachite, whispering. "Uh, why is he still here? And what does he mean by... missions?"

"I may or may not have enlisted him... He's actually really strong. And useful. He's basically a male buffed-up Andesine."

"Hey! I'm better!"

"...You're okay. I guess."

Garnet chuckled; the light reflecting off her visors was more red than blue. "Burn."

Andesine got up. "I'll show you a burn."

The Ruby side was more evident now. "No need."

The words _were_ Ruby's, but the tone was Sapphire's. It was... calming.

She sat down again, sipping the coffee. Really, it was too cold. Maybe it's hot for a Gem who can't regulate their body temperature.

Who knows, though; Andesine can't thermo-regulate to be cold. Azurite got burns just standing near her, and not even his water could help with them.

But there was someone who had thermo-regulation too...

...It's just that no one knew it.

And no one ever would.

 **Mirror Hall, ?:? - ?, ?**

Serpentine left the meeting room, entering the Hall.

The Hall's true name was the Mirror Hall; a place where anything could happen to anyone.

To Serpentine, it was probably the best thing on Homeworld. Here, what happened to her was surreal.

Every time she touched the Relic at the top of the altar at the end of the Hall, she would activate a slab assigned to her. She'd put her hand on it, turning on her mirror.

Every Gem in the Shade cult had a mirror.

And that's what made this place tick.

Serpentine put her hand _through_ the mirror. Another hand came through; except it wasn't hers.

Rather, it was her true opposite.

A Labradorite-type Gem, with a strange body structure.

The bottom half was that of a ghost's, the top half being solid, as it should be.

Smells like ectoplasm.

Here's Spectrolite.


	13. Purity Arc Chapter 12 : Disheartened

**Purity Arc**

 **Chapter Twelve:**

 **Disheartened**

 **Crystal Temple, 6:02 AM – Tuesday, Dec. 4**

I jumped out the Temple window, quickly slipping the Stealth Orb into my belt. I didn't activate it; not needed anyways.

Malachite looked at me. "Altaite, wrong way. Warp Pad's over there."

I turned around to face him. He smiled.

I hopped back in, rolling my eyes and dashing toward the Warp Pad, where Black Opal and that one girl Malachite and Turquoise are friends with. I can't seem to remember her name. Can't be helped.

We all warped away.

 **Mirror Hall, ?:? – Tuesday, Dec. 4?**

I went in carelessly.

That was a huge mistake.

There was a strange sight.

Two Gems.

One had green skin and somewhat short hair. She wore a single glove on her right hand which ran up to meet her gem on the back of her arm. There were diamond patterns cut into it, but none on the gem's side.

The other was quite... surreal. I noticed that its top half was solid, but its bottom half was not. It was just... translucent. The scenery behind _it_ wavered through the bottom half.

I tapped on the Stealth Orb, watching my hand turn invisible slowly. Soon the rest of my body was like that. I cut out the sound of my footsteps.

I never noticed that the others went off in their own directions. Oh well.

As I got close, I could hear the green Gem talking. "...Iolite doesn't want you going around, trying to get through walls and stuff. Just because your lower half isn't really there doesn't mean your top half isn't. The Healing Fountain can't do that forever, so quit mashing your top half into walls in hopes of finally going through them... What? Quit laughing. Spectrolite, it's not funny. I mean, watching you fail is, but the Fountain's using up more water than it could replace just as fast."

Spectrolite. That was that one's name.

"Serpentine, listen. I'm never gonna stop."

"Fine then. Not my fault if you get a boo-boo."

"...Serpentine please."

"I'm full of 'em! What do you call a ghost that scares chickens?"

"A poultry-geist."

"Wrong! A poultry-geist... Wait."

"I've heard that one a million times, Serpentine. Your ghost puns aren't funny."

"How do ghosts stay fit?"

I tapped her shoulder, now fully visible. "They exorcise."

I summoned two cannons, teleporting them to the walls. If she makes another move, both of them will set off, and then I'll only have to deal with that... thing.

"Oh. Well, looks like I've given up the ghost."

"SERPENTINE STOP I SWEAR."

"What? Are you too _high-spirited_ for my puns?" She winked.

"Oh."

She nodded.

"Ohhhhh!" The Gem jumped, taking off. They came back down, fusing with Serpentine, but not in the regular way.

Half of Serpentine's body became ghost-like. She jumped up, triggering both of my cannons, the cannonballs shattering two mirrors. Might as well shatter all of them.

I lifted my right hand, spawning hundreds of them in front of just as many mirrors.

"No!"

Spectrolite jumped out of Serpentine's body, dropping her. She fell out of the air, faceplanting and growling.

Serpentine got up quickly, dashing forward and clutching her chest. "I'm not letting you do that. Iolite would kill me, and shattering that mirror would kill Spectrolite."

Tough decision.

What would I do-

…

No.

I swore I heard something.

Footsteps.

–

I woke up, dazed and confused. I was bound to the wall by fire rope. Those _rope burns_ would hurt. Haha.

"Wha-?"

I saw something before I was punched in the face. It was Tourmaline, but the look in her eyes, the joyful glint...

It was gone.

Her irises were smaller too, and her light pink skin was paler.

Of course this wasn't Tourmaline. Couldn't have been.

My heart might have been broken, but that won't stop my thoughts.

This was something darker.

No.

It was something deeper than _that._


	14. Purity Arc Chapter 13: Second Chance

**Purity Arc**

 **Chapter Thirteen: Second Chance**

 **Bubble Chamber, 12:00 AM – Monday, Dec. 10**

Malachite walked in, following Garnet. They'd just gotten back from lunch with Steven. Even though Malachite hated eating, he still thought he should take Steven to eat.

"Altaite's been gone for almost a week now. We can't do any missions that involve smashing things as efficiently. Right now, we only have your gauntlets, Andesine's hammer, and Orthoclase's maul. They are pretty powerful by themselves, but Altaite's cannon... Ugh. Never mind." He walked over to one bubble.

It was an orange gem in a blue bubble. It had a diamond-like shape and was faceted down to a low point.

"Ugh. Jasper."

Garnet grunted in response. She walked away from the bubble, deciding to carry on with what she intended to do anyways.

She took a pink bubble. There was a green gem inside with a black band running along the middle, splitting into a circle and then re-merging.

She looked back at Malachite, still holding the bubble. "I hope you're ready to seize and purify."

He nodded, getting ready to lunge.

Garnet popped the bubble, letting the gem inside glow and then form.

The glowing mass turned into a giant worm-like creature with mandibles and a flowing greenish-white mane.

Malachite jumped onto its back before it had the chance to spit acid. He ran up towards the head, swinging off and holding the top mandible so he wouldn't fall. He hung in front of the mouth, where the gem was.

He opened a pocket dimension, holding his hand in front of his gem and retrieving some healing water.

He sprayed some into the creature's gem, letting go of the jaw.

Malachite landed on the floor, smiling.

They watched as it glowed again, this time forming an actual Gem.

It formed a basic structure, then created the long hair. There were spikes on the arms, with a slightly larger one on each elbow.

The clothes came next. Somewhat similar to Peridot's, except they were a darker green and the pants were ripped. The diamond was ripped off, but not very well, as some of the lime green could be seen. A member of Green Diamond's, then. But Green Diamond was gone, just like all the others. She had no counterpart either.

She had white sleeves opposed to Peridot, who had none. Where the spikes were, there were diamond-shaped cutouts. The mandibles were still there, with the gem still inside. She had a somewhat long, _serpentine_ tail or sorts. There were mandibles on the end as well.

Malachite stood next to Garnet, who crossed her arms, waiting.

"Steven will be happy. Or he'll be sad. We only know that this Gem was precious to him when it was corrupt."

"Is it..?"

Garnet nodded. "The Centipeetle."

The Gem opened its one eye. "What..."

Malachite took a step back, like Garnet did. There was green acid leaking from the mouth, which was also where the gem – which was also the eye – was.

"Am I..." Something flashed through her mind. Her eye widened. "The kid... The 'Steven'... This was where he let me loose... Is he here..?"

She noticed the two Gems.

She recognized Garnet.

 **Bubble Chamber, 12:19 AM – Monday, Dec. 10**

Garnet finally managed to calm her down.

The Gem appeared to be an Emerald, but not a standard one. There were impurities in it.

Malachite asked if her name came to mind. She was quiet for a few minutes, but then responded, "Trapiche Emerald."

Quite a while later, they decided she was ready to meet Steven again.

"Oh my gosh! Centipeetle?!" He ran up to her, feeling her hair. "It IS you!"

She smiled – or attempted to – and tried holding back the acid. She somewhat succeeded, but a bit on on the floor. But since she wasn't corrupt anymore, it just made a tiny crack. "We can fix that later! Right now, we need to buy more chips! C'mon!" He took her by the hand, running outside.

Emerald just looked at them as if she was trying to say "save me," but decided against it. It would be nice to catch up with her one friend.

 **Crystal Temple, 3:53 AM – Monday, Dec. 10**

"Where am I gonna put a star?"

Emerald sat down next to Steven. Peridot was visiting from the barn. Lapis decided to stay.

Peridot, who curled up behind Emerald on the couch, mumbled, "I feel you."

"And why would Yellow Diamond be after you? Surely she's been called a clod before, right?"

No one laughed.

"Right?"

When no one answered, she just sank back in her seat, regretting that. Steven decided to change the subject.

"Your hair could be shaped like a star- oh, no, never mind. Your hair is unique. Maybe you could put it right... there!"

He pointed at the spot where the green diamond used to be. "Yeah! That's the perfect spot!"

She got up, putting her cloak back on. Her crystal scales have gotten a bit colder than usual. "Is there a place here where I could warm up?"

"Yeah! The Bubble Chamber! There's lava in there!"

Emerald hissed, acid leaking onto the floor.

"Oh, right. Well, the sand outside is pretty hot at this time of day. And you should probably keep the acid off the sand-"

She was gone the second he said the word "hot."

"Wait! Come back!" Steven jumped, floating out the doorway. He thought of the Gems, which let him fall almost immediately.

By the time he got there, there was already a strange Gem monster in front of Emerald.

Garnet told Steven to stay off the beach for the day, but he didn't know why. And now he does.

Emerald "smiled." Her "cheeks" were filled up completely.

Steven watched as she sent a dense stream of acid at the monster.

It poofed instantaneously, and he watched her bubble the amorphous creature's gem, which was shaped in a strange way, like an icosahedron.

Emerald turned around, holding the bubble. It looked exactly like her gem.

She sent it off to the Bubble Chamber without a word. She took her cloak off and she just threw herself on the sand.

Emerald's gem started shining. Her hair was glowing too; she must be regenerating after having to use such a powerful stream of acid.

That's how all Emeralds were. They could just regenerate without having to poof, and they'd be fine after a few hours of sunbathing.

But, obviously, whatever produced the acid would need to recuperate more than Trapiche Emerald herself.

 **Torment, ? – ?, ?**

Tourmaline demanded that the Amethyst give her the whip.

Altaite sat helpless, his hands burning whenever he made the slightest movements.

Tourmaline stretched the whip as much as it could go, smacking it against the ground and kicking up some purple sparks.

Altaite closed his eyes tight, bracing for the impact of the spiked whip against his skin.

The pain never came...

...Because there was no one to receive it.


End file.
